Does anyone else miss secret identities?

[Alan2099]

It has nothing to do with the technology level.

People have been saying since the days when Superman still changed his clothes in a phonebooth that secret identities made no sense and would quickly get found out. It's always been one of the biggest criticism of superheroes, right up there with why does everybody look so good in tights?

At some point people just started refusing to suspend their disbelief. I just chalk it up to being one of those annoying "oh no. Superheroes are serious. they have to be realistic" bits of nonsense people blather on about so as not to have to admit they enjoy something that was designed for little children.

[Triniking1234]

Not every superhero is loaded like the F4 and Iron Man where they can go superhero full time. Then there are the superheroes who had normal lives before they became heroes so they had relations anyway. Therefore the secret ID was necessary in some cases.

[DragonsChi]

This forum should of had a poll.


But I miss them. The idea that most of the Marvel Heroes now are independently wealthily so they don't need a secret identity is more unbelievable to me than them actually having one.

[KurtW95]

This forum should of had a poll.

Yeah. Wish I'd thought to make one to go with the thread. But I just made on the stawpoll.me site. Vote if you'd like.

http://www.strawpoll.me/16181043

[Vegeta]

What I find implausible is that with so many heroes that have public identities, no super villains are targeting their friends, families and co-workers. if I was Carnage I would have already made it a point to stab out Pepper Potts eyes, eat Jessica Drew's baby and gut that old lady that makes Carol Danvers those stupid hats.

And yes, I am factoring in retaliation from the supers.
A.) Death is always a factor when in battle with a super. Not everyone is a Spider-Man, some good guys are Wolverine or Punisher who will attempt to kill you for a bank heist.
B.) As a super villain, resurrection seems to occur pretty frequently. Carnage died once before and got better.

So why a big bad like Carnage, Juggernaut or Sabertooth hasn't googled the address of Clint Barton's apartment and killed all the tenants by now is God Damn ridiculous, and far more unrealistic than a hero maintaining a secret ID.

[ed2962]

I disagree about Iron Man. It was GREAT when most of his teammates didn't even know who he was. As the CEO and majority shareholder of a publicly traded company, it really MADE SENSE to have an anonymous super hero body guard.

He has a bodyguard, but he and the bodyguard are never in the same place at the same time and nobody even questions well what's the bodyguard's real name...

[DrNewGod]

Is that supposed to proof anything? Because it's mostly the lightning and haircut that makes her look different here.
Those huge glasses in general only make you look like a hipster version of yourself, not a different person.

...that an easily dismissed disguise might work?

Just sayin'...

[Agent Z]

This is what I was talking about.


Sure people can say the writer can put normal people in their lives, but considering the likelihood they will then be targeted by HYDRA or some other group of villains it actually seems selfish on the part of the super to be mixing with them.

That happens regardless of secret identities. If anything, a public identity should discourage such behaviour from villains once they learn what happens to people that mess with the heroes' friends.

[Mr MajestiK]

Secret identities actually forced writers to be more creative as regards character building and the generation of genuine tension within the characters overarching story.

My two cents.

[Frontier]

He has a bodyguard, but he and the bodyguard are never in the same place at the same time and nobody even questions well what's the bodyguard's real name...

This reminds me of when Bethany Cabe met Iron Man for the first time and she called out how terrible a bodyguard he looked on-paper .

Secret identities actually forced writers to be more creative as regards character building and the generation of genuine tension within the characters overarching story.

My two cents.

I also think to some degree it led writers to get more creative with the supporting cast in terms of how they were relevant to a heroes life without necessarily knowing their identity.

Now either everybody knows you're identity or is actively involved in your Superhero life.

[Hypestyle]

It has nothing to do with the technology level.

People have been saying since the days when Superman still changed his clothes in a phonebooth that secret identities made no sense and would quickly get found out. It's always been one of the biggest criticism of superheroes, right up there with why does everybody look so good in tights?

At some point people just started refusing to suspend their disbelief. I just chalk it up to being one of those annoying "oh no. Superheroes are serious. they have to be realistic" bits of nonsense people blather on about so as not to have to admit they enjoy something that was designed for little children.

it is technology. from the videotape 80s era forward, Internet, etc.

[Arsenal]

No, not really. The extra "tension and drama" the secret ID causes the character is usually my least favorite thing about said book because it's never been particularly interesting

[WeirdSpider]

He has a bodyguard, but he and the bodyguard are never in the same place at the same time

"Best" bodyguard ever.

I'm really glad that they didn't bother making Iron Man's identity a secret in the MCU.

[Tendrin]

It depends on the theme of the character in question.

Is isolation a theme pertinent to the character the way it was with Spider-Man? Is it a /sacrifice/ that says something about who the character is? Is the secret identity evocative in some way?

I will say, however, that the most important point raised here is the death of the civilian supporting cast. Secret identities were a tool that kept the hero grounded in the 'real world' a bit more with friends and neighbors who didn't necessarily know stuff. With amove to '24/7' heroing, some of that grounding has been lost and it hasn't really been replaced with anything that doesn't leave the heroes seeming somewhat in a bubble. When all their friends are heroes, when they only date heroes, when all their primary interactions are with the hero community, it begins to feel more like 'celeb culture' than it does anything else.

[jetengine]

The only time Secret Identities make sense is to protect your non Super powered friends and family. Most heroes lack that now days or their villains are smart enough to think "If I kill Supermans wife he's just going to kill me".

It makes more sense for street levelers though.